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Flamenco? Does anyone dance it or have a dc that does?

11 replies

ZZZenagain · 14/05/2013 10:43

Wondering about whether to try and get dd to give Flamenco a try. She has a habit of slouching about which I try to correct. If I remind her, she straightens up, but left to herself she tends to slouch. I know it is not a problem yet as in not a case for a chiropracter but I was wondering if FLamenco might help combat it since the posture in Flamenco is so upright.

Not sure if she would take to it. She tried ballet when she was small and absolutely did not go for it. She is not girly so I am wondering whether Flamenco would suit or not. Can't really see her in a Flamenco dress tbh but I could imagine she would like the music. I doubt you have to wear a dress for the practice sessions, probably just for performances and I don't really see her performing. Not the world's most elegant mover but very exuberant in her moves.

Yoga she did for a while which was great but no longer possible due to conflicting activities.

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ZZZenagain · 14/05/2013 10:49

no real question in that. My question is really how girly is Flamenco - from the whole set up, who attends and so on? Is it totally different to a ballet class?

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Picturesinthefirelight · 14/05/2013 13:17

I would have thought you had to wear a practice skirt for sessions. Dd is doing a Spanish dance at her dance school at the moment and they have been told to wear long character or gypsy style skirts to practice with.

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Bonbonchance · 14/05/2013 13:24

Not sure about children's flamenco, but from what know about adults they use the skirt in class/rehearsal, working the skirt is very much part of it. And you need flamenco shoes too/hard soled character shoes.

I can't think of any children's flamenco classes at all tbh, would other forms of dance be any good? I know she didn't like ballet which is what I'd think of right away for posture, but jazz/modern still would teach posture & holding self properly, and help develop eg stomach & back muscles (which if are weak wont help posture) or maybe tap as closest to flamenco?

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Picturesinthefirelight · 14/05/2013 13:32

Modern is great for posture.

Not strictly flamenco but there is an after school Spanish dance club at the high school dd is going to run by one if the languages teachers. I do t know of any Ctual classes.

What about ballroom/Latin?

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ZZZenagain · 14/05/2013 18:03

she would never wear the outfits for ballroom or latin.

I called a flamenco dance studio which offers children's courses and they told me she can wear anything for a trial lesson but that otherwise she'd need to wear a skirt. I am sure she won't want to do it in that case.

I actually don't know any Spanish dances. Is that folk dances in circle?

Might see if she is willing to observe a flamenco class. I see it as womanly rather than girly, quite strong and emotional which would be a good fit, but she has to like it.

I always associate flamenco with good carriage and a lovely straight back. Hadn't thought about modern at all. Will look into it.

Thanks

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Groovee · 28/05/2013 07:50

My dd did flamenco for 6 years. She loved it. She had to wear a black leotard and a flamenco skirt and shoes. They use the skirt to dance so she would need to wear it.

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Mimishimi · 20/06/2013 07:22

My daughter and I dance. I've been dancing since I was 12. DD is on a short break atm (due to not practising, starting new school etc) but she has been dancing since she was seven and she's almost 13. She's a fantastic dancer, I'm about average. It can be very much a feminine sort of dance for the women but it's not 'light n'floaty' IYKWIM. Also, there are some dances traditionally reserved for men and it's not considered an effiminate dance for guys since they have different hand movements and often more footwork.

However, your DD will be expected to keep a good posture so if her natural tendency is to slouch, she will get pulled up for it in class quite a bit. She will have to wear a skirt simply because she will be expected to use one in performances - but it doesn't have to have lots of ruffles - just one at the bottom is usually fine.. My only suggestion would be to find as many schools as you can and ask to go and sit in on a children's class for each one of them. One of the reasons DD is not so keen at the moment is her teacher doesn't really have any children her age in the classes. We're looking into another school for her for that reason.

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ZZZenagain · 20/06/2013 10:09

I thought she might be willing to try it since she is enjoying learning Spanish. I think you are right, I will see if she can observe a couple of classes. There are two possibilities for her age group not far from where we live so I will see if we can look at both.

I don't know why she hates skirts/dresses so much, she did wear them when she was small.

Actually there is a woman who teaches Spanish dances to girls near us too. I have no idea what kind of dancing that is though.

Where do you get the shoes/skirts for flamenco from? I have had a bit of a google but nothing much has come up.

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ZZZenagain · 20/06/2013 10:32

ok going to try it out on Friday. It seems there is a group of girls her age but they are already quite advanced so she would need to try the group of younger girls. She is unlikely to be naturally gifted at it so it will depend whether she likes that or feels out of place.

Thanks everyone

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Mimishimi · 21/06/2013 04:00

Proper flamenco shoes can be very expensive so I wouldn't recommmend anything other than character shoes with a solid heel at this stage. Shr doesn't need the nails as yet. Keep an eye out on eBay too although generally anything aimed at the tourist market is pretty rubbish (heels fall off quickly etc).

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Mimishimi · 21/06/2013 04:17

Skirts are easy to find though on eBay. She will just need a circle skirt with a ruffle. Also try entering search terms like ', 'latin skirt girl', 'gypsy skirt girl', 'bellydancing skirt girl'. There are also some websites like Flamencista, Esflamenco, and Flamenco World but they can get a bit exxy. Also, tell your DD that she needs to stick it out for at least a year before she learns enough content to get good at it:) Good luck, it's a beautiful danceform with lots of variety - some are folk dances like Sevillanas and Fandangos, some are party dances like tangos and bulerias, some are pretty girly dances like guajiras and alegrias, some are strong masculine dances like Farruca and Garrotin, some are sombre like seguriyas, tientos and solea. Enter any of these terms plus the word 'baile' (otherwise you'll get lots of guitar players too) into Youtube and she can see lots of examples.

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